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Wilhelm Strasse (MachineGames)
Wilhelm "Deathshead" Strasse is a leading member of the German Armed Forces, a gifted researcher and doctor who heads the SS Special Projects Division. He is the main antagonist of Wolfenstein series. His rank in Return to Castle Wolfenstein is Oberführer (Brigadier General), but later he is promoted to Obergruppenführer (General) in Wolfenstein. He also plays a major part as the main antagonist in Wolfenstein: The New Order. Background ''Return to Castle Wolfenstein'' Oberführer Wilhelm "Deathshead" Strasse was the man behind the creations of both the Lopers and the Übersoldats; towering cyborg soldiers that were heavily armed and armored. Unlike the other SS antagonists, Deathshead doesn't believe in the occult and would prefer to arm the Nazi war machine using advanced technology, but has been ordered to provide his creations to Operation Resurrection by Heinrich Himmler himself. He is first encountered in the Secret Weapon Facility. Himmler has also asked him to join the resurrection ceremony but Deathshead declined due to his disbelief in the occult. Deathshead continuously taunts B.J. Blazkowicz during his duel in the lab with an Übersoldat, commenting "Thus we will see the superiority of the machine over flesh and blood." After the protagonist wins the fight, Deathshead narrowly escapes in a rocket plane and goes into hiding, and not to be seen again for the rest of the story. ''Wolfenstein'' Wilhelm Strasse, for some reason, was demoted to Obersturmführer (as seen on his collar). He is revealed to be the main antagonist of the game. Having been summoned from Berlin to replace the deceased Obergruppenführer Viktor Zetta, Deathshead resumes the latter's research into Veil technology, especially for making new advanced weapon technology. Employing the formidable Hans Grosse as his bodyguard, Deathshead orchestrated the capture of Kreisau Circle leader Caroline Becker and held her hostage at his castle base. While constructing a Veil Portal, Deathshead had the opportunity to exact revenge on Blazkowicz as he arrived to save Caroline. Unfortunately, he missed out on it as Caroline's interference destroyed his portal, forcing him and Hans to flee the area while Blazkowicz dealt with the Queen Geist. Having done enough work on Veil technology, Deathshead constructed a Veil weapon on his large zeppelin and planned to test it on Isenstadt before unleashing it on the Allied Powers. With Hans behind him, Deathshead entered the Black Sun Dimension where the weapon was installed and is greeted by Blazkowicz. Already expecting the American to follow him, Deathshead revealed to Blazkowicz an armored and Veil empowered Hans and returned to the zeppelin to oversee the weapons test, ordering Hans to kill Blazkowicz. To his shock, not only did he see an alive Blazkowicz emerge from the portal, Deathshead noticed that Blazkowicz had destroyed the Veil weapon and severely damaged the zeppelin causing it to crash into the castle base in a fiery wreck. While Blazkowicz hoped his archenemy had perished, he had a feeling that the mad doctor survived. Unbeknownst to him, a battered and bruised Deathshead emerged from the zeppelin wreckage and screamed in anger at his failure in the final cutscene. ''The New Order'' Strasse will return in the upcoming game Wolfenstein: The New Order. He will be one of the main antagonists in the game and it is unclear how he managed to turn the tide of World War II for the Nazis' favor. Strasse shows to have been badly scarred since his last appearance. According to the official website: Europe, 1946. World War II rages across Europe. Where once the Allies pressed advantage, the Nazi forces have turned the tide in dramatic fashion behind the technologically advanced war machine of General Wilhelm Strasse -- Deathshead. When a final Allied assault on Deathshead's compound fails, the Allies’ greatest hope falls with it. General Wilhelm "Deathshead" Strasse, a gifted and devoted researcher, is head of the SS Special Projects Division. Utterly devoid of any moral scruples, the General's experiments in new technology gave the Nazi war machine the edge it needed to win the war and force the world into submission. During the war, Deathshead almost perished in a zepplin crash. This near death experience gave him a fresh outlook on life and he loves every minute of it. SPOILER! 'He makes his final appearance in ''The New Order. At the end of the game he is stabbed by Blazkowicz and blows himself up with a grenade. The suicide bombing mauls Blazkowicz, leaving Blazkowicz's fate unknown. Profile *Sex: Male *Country: (Native) Germany *Height: 167 cm *Weight: 48 kg *Age: 100 (During'' The New Order'') Quotes ''Return to Castle Wolfenstein'' *''"Major, why are we not yet ready to depart ?"'' *''"I don't have time for this nonsense. I have important business to attend to. This boat leaves for the X-Lab within in hour. Torpedo or no. Is that understood, Major ?"'' *''"What? Will this fool follow me to the ends of the earth?"'' *''"Dispatch the remaining security force immediately."'' *''"What? It's not possible! We will meet again another day!"'' ''Wolfenstein'' *''"Agent Blazkowicz. When I heard reports you were in town, I could not believe my good fortune - finally, I can have my revenge."'' *''"You're not the one giving orders here. Drop your weapon, Agent Blazkowicz."'' *''"And that is why the Third Reich will triumph, Blazkowicz. We are willing to risk everything to win."'' *''"Nein! Nein!"'' *''"You work for me, doctor. Not with me."'' *''"Auf wiedersehen."'' *''"Agent Blazkowicz... you have an annoying tendency to appear at the worst possible moment. Which is why I have taken certain precautions."'' *''"Beautiful, isn't it? Such raw unbridled power. It destroyed the Thule Civilization; but where they failed, we will succeed."'' *''"I have the technology to control it. And our first demonstration will be the city of Isenstadt. After that, I will destroy everything that stands in my way - the world will fall on it knees before the Third Reich."'' *''"A shame you won't get to see the swastika flying proudly over Washington D.C.."'' *''"Hans, kill him. And this time, do not fail me."'' *''"Damn you, Blazkowicz!"'' ''The New Order'' *"You call me Deathshead... I don't like it. I'm a happy man. You see?" *''"I like you. Such a resilient specimen."'' *''"Die, Allied schweinehund!"'' *''"So... gullible."'' Trivia *It is unclear who Strasse's English voice actor is in Return to Castle Wolfenstein. In Wolfenstein he is voiced by '''Robin Atkin Downes, who also voices the Director of the OSA. In Wolfenstein: The New Order, he is voiced by Dwight Schultz. *Along with B.J., Strasse is the only character (and antagonist) who appears in all games in the new Wolfenstein series, at least before the release of The New Order. *Deathshead is a reference to the the skull and crossbones symbol that appeared on the caps and uniforms of the SS, called Totenkopf, also commonly known as the Deaths-head symbol. *Strasse has some similarities with the Marvel Comics and Captain America villain Red Skull. Both are high ranking Nazi scientists and officers, have a skull themed name/alias, develop advanced weapons, and (to vastly different degrees) have a skull like appearance. *Deathhead has had an interesting career in the Wolfenstein games over the years. In his first outing, Deathshead was an SS Oberfuhrer while in the Wolfenstein 2009 he was promoted to a Obergruppenfuhrer (General), albeit with the wrong collar tab insignia (see above). By the time of The New Order, Herr Deathshead has apparently been transferred from the SS to the Wehrmacht, as his uniform is that of a high ranking army staff officer i.e. General. It is unknown why this is the case, as screenshots and trailers for the game show other characters (Frau Engel) with SS uniforms. **The reason for this career change appears to be the lack of research into Deathshead's personal history, i.e. the previous installments, by the developers. **It can also be noted that while the soldiers at the start of the game are listed to be Wehrmacht, they all use the SS collar rune. This, combined with the uniforms worn by Deathshead and Frau Engel imply that the Wehrmacht has been absorbed into, or taken over by the SS. ''Return to Castle Wolfenstien'' *According to the Return to Castle Wolfenstein manual, he is based on Doctor Schabbs. He has much in common with him. Both are doctors who are very scientifically educated and both have developed ultimate creations; Strasse's technological brainchild is the Ubersoldat and Schabbs' biological masterpiece is the Übermutant. ''Wolfenstein'' *In Wolfenstein, Strasse's name is alternately spelled "Strauss". This is a mistake in the 2009 game; Strauss and Strasse are very different names with different meanings. *The insignia on his collar in Wolfenstein lists him incorrectly as an Obersturmführer (Lieutenant) instead of a Obergruppenführer (General). *In the last mission of Wolfenstein, it's possible to shoot him, he does not seems to take any damage, however. *According to Jack, he is one of the most dangerous figures in the Third Reich. *Some time between Wolfenstein and The New Order, during the Nazis rise to world domination. Strasse's focus would shift more from exploiting the supernatural to experimenting with decopunk-styled robotics and technologies into the 1960's. ''The New Order'' *Deaths wears a mechanics overall over his uniform, implying he spends more time creating war machines and weapons than leading troops. *According to the Wolfenstein: The New Order website, Deathshed is 100 years old in 1960. Possibly using unnatural methods to retain his health. **This would mean Strasse was 83 years old during Return to Castle Wolfenstein ''and ''Wolfenstein, and 86 during Wolfenstein: The New Order's prologue. *When Deathshead is using a Mechanized Armor, he says to B.J. "Die allied schweinehund!" This is a throwback to Mecha Hitler in Wolfenstein 3D. Gallery ''Return to Castle Wolfenstein'' Wilhelm_Strasse.jpg Deatshead_in_SWF.JPG|Wilhelm Strasse in the Secret Weapons Facility. strasser_xlabs.png|Strasse in his X-lab. ''Wolfenstein'' Wolfenstein-Strasse 2.png|Wilhelm Strasse with Hans Grosse holding Caroline Becker, confronting Blazkowicz in the Castle of Isenstadt. Wolfenstein-Strasse 3.png|Wilhelm Strasse in the Black Sun Dimension. ''Wolfenstein: The New Order'' 573025.png|Wilhelm Strasse with an UberSoldat. Deathshead.jpg WtNO Deathshead.jpg Deathshead2.png|Deathshead in 1946. General-Deathshead-Wolfenstein-The-New-Order-Villains-Concept-Art-640x1024.jpg|Concept art of Deathshead in The New Order. es:Wilhelm Strasse fr:Wilhelm Strasse nl:Wilhelm Strasse Category:Return to Castle Wolfenstein characters Category:Wolfenstein characters Category:Characters Category:The New Order characters Category:Nazis Category:Bosses